


When you're ready I am here

by Meghan Page (mutter11)



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Aphasia, Brain Damage, F/F, Jealousy, Memory Loss, Recovery, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-15
Updated: 2019-10-09
Packaged: 2020-06-29 04:44:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19822810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mutter11/pseuds/Meghan%20Page
Summary: AsVoyagertravels through the Delta Quadrant, an unknown ship attacks. While saving B'Elanna from danger, Seven of Nine is gravely injured and her cortical node is damaged. When she wakes, her memories are gone and she has trouble communicating. As B'Elanna helps her through her recovery, repaying her for saving her life, she can't help but see the ex-Borg in a new light...





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is inspired by the episode "Riddles" where Tuvok is attacked and loses his memory
> 
> Trigger Warning: this chapter includes a graphic description of a burn injury at the end of the chapter

_ Voyager _ drifted serenely through space, running on impulse power as it approached its latest phenomenon for study. The protoplanetary nebula, with its brief lifespan, had caught the interest of the scientific minds of the crew, but no one had fully anticipated its beauty. Gasses stretched to either side of the dying star like enormous butterfly wings, forming wisps of blue and orange and pink. Anyone close to a viewport couldn’t help but stop and stare as the ship drew closer.

Captain Kathryn Janeway was taking a moment to do just that, a serene look on her face as she took in the vibrant colors splayed across the bridge’s viewport.

“Isn’t it beautiful, Chakotay?” she murmured to her first officer seated beside her.

“It certainly is,” he agreed, a smile upon his own face. “And a rare opportunity to study this type of phenomenon before the star starts to ionize it.”

Kathryn sighed wistfully. “It’s just too bad such a lovely view has a time limit. But I guess that means I should get together a survey crew as soon as possible. Now… who should I pick?” she mused playfully, barely concealing a smirk as she caught Harry and Tom glance at each other excitedly. She knew the two young men were raring to get back into the  _ Delta Flyer _ after several weeks stuck aboard  _ Voyager _ as they traveled through empty space.

But before she could continue to tease them, a warning blipped on Harry’s console.

“Captain,” he called. “Sensors are picking up a vessel decloaking off our port bow.”

Immediately intrigued and on edge, Kathryn ordered, “On screen.”

She stood and stepped towards the viewscreen as the vibrancy of the nebula was replaced with a small, oblong ship. It was a strange, egg-shaped craft, its hull plating a dull gunmetal gray that reflected little light.

“Hail them,” she told Harry.

He tapped the command into his console and quickly reported, “No response.”

Suddenly, a strange humming sound filled the air, and the bridge was awash in a band of yellow light.

Tuvok’s voice sounded from his station. “They appear to be scanning us.”

Everyone looked around nervously as the beam moved across the bridge until it finished its sweep and flickered out. Their eyes followed the Captain’s as she turned to Tuvok and barked, “Report.”

“The scan was able to penetrate the entire ship. However, it does not appear to have had any affect on our systems,” he told her. “I believe the vessel was attempting to ascertain the structural layout of  _ Voyager _ .”

“Why?” she questioned. She had a bad feeling about the whole situation.

Before anyone could even begin to theorize an answer, the vessel winked from existence, its cloaking mechanisms reinitializing.

Kathryn’s feeling went from bad to worse.

“Harry, can you figure out where they went?”

Even as his fingers danced over his console, Harry shook his head. “Negative, ma’am, sensors aren’t picking them up anywhere.”

Without warning, the deck shook as something struck  _ Voyager _ .

“What was that?” Kathryn shouted.

Analyzing his console’s readouts, Tuvok reported, “It would appear the cloaked vessel is now firing on us.”

“Full power to shields!” she ordered. “Harry, open a channel, all subspace bands.”

At his nod, she put on her most officious voice, calling out, “This is Captain Janeway of the Federation starship  _ Voyager _ . We mean you no harm. Cease fire.”

The answer came in the form of another blow, sending crewmen stumbling at their stations. Kathryn stalked back to her command chair, throwing herself into it as she barked, “Red alert! I want all hands to battlestations. Can we get a lock on them?”

“Negative, ma’am, their cloak is making them impossible to detect,” Harry said, his forehead creased in concern.

A third blast had her spinning to her Chief of Security. “Tuvok, damage report!”

“He appears to be targeting our shield generators. Shields are down to eighty percent.” Another rumbling shock. “Seventy two percent.”

“Tom, evasive maneuver beta nine.” Grim-faced, she ignored the sparks that rained down as the alien ship landed another hit. “Harry, do whatever you have to do to get a lock.”

Hitting her commbadge, she reached out to her Astrometrics officer. “Seven, can you give us anything?”

The ex-Borg was currently in Engineering, having gone over to requisition extra power to allow her to perform detailed scans of the protoplanetary nebula. She now stood in the middle of a controlled storm, crewpeople rushing here and there as they tried to shore up the shield generators.

“Apologies, Captain, but this vessel does not match any species in the Borg database,” she regretfully informed Kathryn. She hated when her Borg memory failed to provide helpful information, especially in the midst of a crisis. “However, I have ascertained that they are using a disruptor with an unfamiliar but unique signature.”

“Can you devise a way to track this signature?” Kathryn asked, her voice tinged with a wary hope.

“One moment, I am currently in Engineering.” Turning from the calculations she had been performing, she stalked over to the console in front of the Chief of Engineering’s office. She quickly re-accessed her scans of the space outside  _ Voyager _ , focusing on the data from the weapons fire. “I believe I can configure the sensors to detect when the weapons are charging to fire, but this would only provide a split second in which to target the ship.”

“It’ll have to be enough,” the Captain said grimly. “Do it!”

“Acknowledged,” Seven returned coolly, her fingers already flying over the control panel. She had not been able to aid her collective by identifying the vessel, but she would not fail in devising a way to detect it.

Just then, B'Elanna hurried over from the other side of Engineering, intent on getting to her console to try and find any information that could help her crew defend  _ Voyager _ against the alien’s onslaught. Her steps faltered as she caught sight of the statuesque blonde already standing there, then sped back up as she marched the last few meters.

“What are you doing at my console?” she demanded, her fists on her hips. Although not technically hers alone, it was the one she used most, since it was directly outside her office, and it was necessarily advanced enough to run the type of complicated diagnostics she needed. But semantics didn’t matter when the Ice Queen was invading her space.

Not even sparing her a glance, Seven informed her, “I am attempting to devise a way for  _ Voyager _ to lock on to the alien vessel.”

B'Elanna could feel her blood pressure rising. “And you couldn’t do that in Astrometrics?”

“The Captain asked me to do this while I was still in Engineering. It seemed inefficient to go back to Astrometrics.”

“And you just had to use my console, huh?” B'Elanna asked acerbically.

Seven simply raised her ocular implant. “It has the most processing power.”

Throwing her hands out to the side, she exclaimed, “Exactly! Power I need to figure out how to keep the shields up!” She made a frustrated sound in the back of her throat. “Just stop sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong and take your project back to your own lab.”

Seven didn’t budge. “That would be an inefficient use of my time. In addition, I would not be on location to help if anything were to happen here.”

“We don’t need your help!” Unable to suppress a growl, B'Elanna pointed a menacing finger at Seven’s face. “I don’t have time to hit you right now, or believe me, you’d be on the deck out cold.”

She whirled towards the warp core, stomping towards the main console in front of it, determined to show Seven just where she could stick her “help.”

Just then, a massive shock thundered through Engineering, sending sparks flying from every direction. Crewpeople were thrown to the ground as another hit rattled the hull, then another.

“What’s going on, Tuvok?” Kathryn yelled. Her second officer had just told her the shields were beginning to fail, but instead of targeting their weapons array or nacelles, as she had expected, these impacts felt like they were coming from closer to the bottom of the ship.

“Weapons fire has condensed towards starboard, deck eleven.” Though his face betrayed nothing, Kathryn could see the tiny spark of apprehension in his eyes. “They appear to be targeting Engineering.”

Her heart leaping into warp, she slapped her commbadge, calling out, “Torres! What’s happening down there?”

B'Elanna’s voice sounded strained through the comm system. “We’re getting massive energy surges down here, Captain! Systems are blowing out left and right! If we don’t do something soon, the warp core is gonna breach!”

Kathryn felt her blood run cold. A core breach was any Captain’s worst nightmare, but this far from the Alpha quadrant, even ejecting was essentially a death sentence for her crew.

Tamping down her panic, she spun to her Ops officer. “Harry! Can you tell where the shots are coming from?”

Harry’s face was pale with stress. “Negative! They’re coming from all different angles! The ship definitely isn’t staying still!”

Silently, she cursed the still-unidentified bastard for attacking her ship unprovoked.

She tapped her commbadge again, contacting Engineering once more. “Seven! Any closer to devising that targeting system?”

“Yes, Captain,” Seven replied. “I believe I only require a few minutes more.”

“I certainly hope so!” Kathryn said, her eyes fixed to her command console as the reading for structural integrity around Engineering continued to fall.

“I will not fail,” Seven swore just before she cut the commlink.

She bent her head to the task with renewed intensity as around her the crew of Engineering scrambled to hold back the tide of destruction from their warp core. Already a number of consoles had blown out, adding another layer of difficulty to an already fraught situation.

B'Elanna had latched on to the core’s main console, both figuratively and literally as the deck bucked under the near-constant assault from the alien vessel.

She beckoned Vorik to her side, shouting to be heard over the explosions of various circuitries.

“We need to keep these energy surges from overloading the core if we want to be able to use it to get out of here. Do whatever you can to divert them through the EPS manifolds!”

“In this case it might be more logical to eject the core,” he offered.

“No way!” B'Elanna shouted. “I’ll just take it offline! With that peta’Q firing so close, there’s a huge chance he’d hit it and kill us all! Or worse, snatch it like those HuH the Caatati. Now get going!”

As he hurried off towards the EPS controls, she bent back over the core control panel and began the sequence to take it offline. She hated to do so during a battle, when they might need to jump to warp at any time, but between a shutdown and a full-on breach, she would take the extra time needed to power it back up.

Behind her, Seven was finally able to complete her specifications for tracking the alien’s weapon emissions. Sending the data to Tuvok’s station, she hailed Kathryn on her commbadge.

“Captain, I have successfully devised a tracking system capable of locating the alien vessel. I have sent the specifications to Commander Tuvok.”

Kathryn’s eyes took on a fierce gleam. “Nice work. Tuvok, fire at will!”

Tuvok swiftly input Seven’s specifications, his tracking system immediately pinging a lock. With a press of a button, he sent a barrage of phaser-fire towards the cloaked vessel.

B'Elanna had just finished punching in the last string of commands to take the warp core offline, a feeling of relief creeping over her that she and her crew had managed to keep  _ Voyager _ from destruction once more. And with Seven’s success with the tracking system, soon they would be able to focus on repairs instead of defense. Even as the ship gave one last heave, she walked over towards Seven and leaned against her console, working up the nerve to be the bigger person and offer her thanks. But the look on Seven’s face stopped whatever words she had been about to say in her throat.

The last shot the alien vessel had managed to get off had directly hit Engineering, causing a huge feedback surge through its systems. Seven could feel the tingle of electricity threatening to overload their console through her mesh-covered fingertips, and her eyes grew wide with alarm.

Without warning, she threw her arm out to the side, sending B'Elanna flying through the air.

As she went crashing into the nearest bulkhead, all B'Elanna could see was a bolt of white-hot electricity lance up out of the console she had just been standing in front of, arcing up into Seven’s face and throwing her backwards as well.

Scrambling up from the heap she had landed in, she rushed over to Seven’s side, unable to suppress a horrified gasp.

Seven’s face was covered in burns, turning the skin a painful blistering red with patches of concerning waxy white. The skin around her implants was flayed back, the bloody edges exposing metal underneath. Most alarming, the skin over her cortical implant had split open, exposing the port it was housed in. If that had been damaged…

Hitting her commbadge, B'Elanna cried out, “Torres to Sickbay, medical emergency!”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning: this chapter includes a brief but graphic depiction of surgery

“We got ‘em!” Harry crowed. The alien vessel flickered into view, showing damage across its dull hull as its cloaks failed. “Direct hit! Looks like they’re retreating, they’re engaging warp drives.”

“Should I pursue?” Tom swiveled to look at his Captain.

Kathryn shook her head. “Not yet, Tom, we’ve taken too much damage.”

After doing a brief headcount and finding no one too worse for wear, she decided to check in on the two women who had kept her ship from falling apart.

“Janeway to Engineering. How’s everything down there, ladies?”

The voice that responded was not one she expected. “Captain, this is Ensign Vorik. Seven was injured when her console exploded. The Chief just beamed Seven and herself to Sickbay.”

Kathryn’s satisfied mood immediately evaporated, replaced by a nauseous dread. If B'Elanna had to accompany Seven to Sickbay, that meant that something had gone seriously wrong.

Lurching out of her chair, she barely remembered to spit out, “Chakotay, you have the bridge,” as she rushed towards her girls.

Almost before the sparkles of the transport faded, B'Elanna was frantically scanning Sickbay for the EMH, Seven’s head cradled in her lap. “Doc!” she shouted, her voice cracking.

The Doctor hurried in from his office, his steps freezing as he saw who was lying motionless on the floor. Forcibly setting his own emotions aside, he sprung into action.

“Quickly, help me get her to a biobed,” he told B'Elanna, taking a hold of Seven’s ankles.

B'Elanna followed his lead, adjusting her grip to support Seven’s shoulders. Her stomach roiled at the sight of Seven’s limp body as they carried her between them to the nearest bed.

“What happened?” the Doctor asked, his medical tricorder already out and scanning Seven’s face.

“She was standing at a station in Engineering when it blew out in front of her. There was an explosion – this arc of electricity – it hit her right in the face –”

They both froze when the tricorder let out a series of sharp warning trills. If the Doctor had any blood, it would have drained from his face.

“Doc, what is it?” B'Elanna demanded, her knuckles white on the edge of the biobed.

“Her cortical implant is failing,” he said faintly.

B'Elanna felt as if all the air had left the room. “No…”

There was dead silence for the space of a heartbeat, then the Doctor began to move again, striding with a surety he didn’t feel towards his tray of medical instruments, drawing it towards Seven’s bedside. “All may not be lost. I’ve been studying Seven’s cortical array extensively since we had to replace it, and I believe I now know enough to keep it from shutting down further. But we need to act quickly.”

B'Elanna blinked rapidly. “We?”

“Yes, B'Elanna, I need your expertise if this is going to work.” The Doctor paused to give her a piercing look. “Can you do it?”

She straightened up, a steely look coming over her face. She may have been a real ass to the former drone before, but she wasn’t about to give up on a fellow crewmember when it counted most. “Of course. Just tell me what to do.”

After the EMH explained the procedure he wanted to try, they fell into a tense but synchronous silence, their hands moving in concert over Seven’s face.

Scarce minutes had passed before the doors to the Sickbay hissed open and Kathryn rushed in, out of breath from her race through the corridors. Her eyes immediately went to Seven’s prone form, the universe narrowing to that point as she saw the state her protégé was in.

The side of her forehead was all but cut away, exposing brain tissue and wiring as the Doctor and B'Elanna accessed her cortical implant. Her face was still mottled red and white, the Doctor prioritizing her brain functions over her dermal injuries for the time being. And the blood…

The room began to spin as Kathryn felt her knees give way, only just managing to catch herself on the biobed nearest the door.

“Captain!” B'Elanna called, distracted by her entrance.

“You, keep going!” the Doctor barked at her, sending her head snapping back down to focus on her task.

Quickly, he approached Kathryn’s side, helping her back to her feet. Though he tried to keep his voice level, he couldn’t help the sharp tinge of anxiety as he said, “Captain, this is no time to faint on me, I’ve got a patient who needs my full attention.”

She waved him away, putting an unsteady hand to a pale forehead. “Get back to her, then. I’m fine.”

With a little humph that said he didn’t believe her but wasn’t about to argue, he said, “In that case, I’ll ask you to wait in the corridor and keep anyone else from coming in until Lieutenant Torres and I are done. If there are any other injuries from the encounter I suggest Mister Paris treat them in the mess hall.”

With a nod, Kathryn staggered back into the corridor, leaving the EMH and B'Elanna to focus on saving Seven’s life.

Several hours later, the Doctor reemerged, finding Kathryn, as expected, still waiting just outside the Sickbay doors.

She startled off the bulkhead she had been leaning against, her red-rimmed eyes silently pleading with him for good news.

“Why don’t you come in,” he said gently, gesturing her through the door.

With timid footsteps she followed him, her mind racing at what she might find once inside Sickbay.

What she did see had her gasping in relief. The willowy blonde was lying peacefully on the biobed, looking for all the world like she was merely asleep. Her face was unblemished once more, thanks to the Doctor’s handiwork, save for the opening in her forehead over her cortical node, from which several wires protruded. Kathryn followed them to where they connected to a monitoring device, loosely clutched in the hand of her Chief of Engineering, who was slumped against the nearest bulkhead, completely passed out.

Seeing her attention shift to the woman asleep on the floor, the Doctor explained with a fond smile, “Lieutenant Torres worked extremely hard to help me stabilize Seven’s cortical node. She fell asleep as soon as we completed the surgery, and I thought it prudent to let her get a little rest.”

Kathryn nodded, a crooked smile forming on her own lips. “I’d say she deserves it.”

Slowly, she approached the biobed, observing her young charge. Her chest was rising and falling steadily with regular breaths, and she could see a pulse thrumming in her neck. Although paler than normal, she still had some color in her cheeks. Reaching out to touch the hands folded across her stomach, Kathryn was gratified to find them warm.

Doing her best to hide her visceral relief, she asked, “So… she’s okay?”

The Doctor fidgeted slightly, giving the Captain a rueful look. “She’s not quite out of the woods yet. I did manage to stop the failure cascade in her cortical node, but just barely.” He gave an idiosyncratic sigh. “She’s… stable, is the most positive way I can put it. Her heart is beating and she’s breathing normally, and her nanoprobes are still active, if much more sluggish than usual. But the neurological trauma was extensive. And with her cortical node all but disconnected, there’s no telling what the effect on her functioning will be.”

He placed a comforting hand on Kathryn’s shoulder, knowing she would take the news hard. “At this point, there’s no guarantee she’ll even wake up.”

Kathryn was unable to hide the look of shock and anguish that crossed her features. She cleared her throat, trying to rid herself of the strangled sensation that had overtaken her at the EMH’s words. “She’s strong. If anyone can pull through, it’s her.”

The Doctor followed her gaze down to the prone figure, thinking about the beautiful, intelligent, amazing woman Seven had become. He wasn’t ready to let her go.

“We won’t give up on her.”

Kathryn gazed at him with an odd mix of sadness and gratitude as she concurred, “No, we won’t.”

After taking a moment to breathe, centering herself and calming her swirling emotions, she asked, “Have you checked B'Elanna over yet?”

“Not yet.” The Doctor shook his head. “I wanted to give you a status report as soon as possible.”

Touched by his thoughtfulness, she laid her hand briefly on his shoulder before gesturing to the slumbering half-Klingon. “Go ahead and wake her up. She’ll get a crick in her neck if she stays like that much longer, and the last thing we need is a grouchy Chief of Engineering.”

He let out a laugh, appreciating the Captain’s efforts to lighten the mood. Leaning down, he tapped B'Elanna on the shoulder. “Lieutenant Torres? It’s time to wake up.”

B'Elanna murmured slightly, shifting away from his prodding hand. Suddenly, she shot upright, her eyes searching the room wildly. “Seven?”

The Doctor tightened his grip on her shoulder, forcing her to focus on him. “Lieutenant, calm down. Seven is right here. We were successful in stopping her node from failing.”

B'Elanna sagged in relief, letting her head fall back against the bulkhead. Then she climbed to her feet, groaning at the stiffness in her limbs.

“Who just left me slouched there?” she grumbled, rolling her neck to one side, then the other.

Quirking an amused eyebrow at the Doctor, Kathryn sidestepped the question. “The Doctor wanted to give me a report as soon as he could step away from Seven.”

At the mention of her name, B'Elanna looked down at the young woman, her hand reaching out hesitantly. She wanted to touch the newly smooth skin of Seven’s face, to assure herself that she was truly healed. Shaking her head, she pushed the inappropriate thought aside, and instead busied herself checking the readouts on her handheld monitor.

“She’s stable?” she asked, her voice gruff.

The Doctor nodded. “Yes. She’ll need to regenerate soon in order to restore her nanoprobes, but for now we’ll let her body heal what it can.”

Though she caught the equivocating nature of the Doctor’s reassurance, she nodded, allowing him to guide her to the next biobed.

“Now we need to make sure you don’t have any injuries.” He pulled out his medical tricorder, passing the scanner over her body. “A few contusions, including a fair sized lump on the back of your head, along with a bruised rib, all centralized to the back of your body. Were you also thrown by the blast?” he asked.

B'Elanna shook her head. “No. Seven pushed me away from the console right before it exploded. She saved me…” She trailed off, gazing at the comatose woman like she had never seen her before. Why had the ex-Borg put herself in danger just to save her? Nothing in B'Elanna’s past treatment towards her would warrant such an act.

“Well, you’ll just have to thank her when she wakes up,” Kathryn said with forced confidence.

Breaking out of her inner turmoil, B'Elanna gave her a resolute nod. No matter what the odds, she would make sure Seven recovered so she could do just that.

After mending her cuts and bruises, the Doctor released her from sickbay, with instruction not to push herself too hard in the next twelve hours.

B'Elanna hesitated slightly, looking over his shoulder at Seven. But, seeing Kathryn take up post beside her bed, gathering one of Seven’s limp hands in her own, she simply promised to get a start on a portable regeneration unit and left the room.


	3. Chapter 3

The next few weeks were exceedingly difficult for _Voyager_ ’s Captain.

Externally, things were proceeding smoothly. Although a large amount of circuitry in Engineering had to be replaced due to extensive damage from the alien’s attack, the repairs went well, and they were not left limping through space due to B'Elanna’s quick actions to take the warp core offline. After moving away from the protoplanetary nebula, the ship entered another area of uninhabited space, making for easy sailing. B'Elanna and Harry had constructed a portable regeneration unit and the Doctor had begun neurostatic therapy, although he reported no change in Seven’s condition.

Internally, Kathryn was a mess. The extent to which Seven’s absence affected her came as a shock. She felt it almost like a physical wound. Though she always knew she cared deeply for the ex-drone as her mentor and guardian, her visceral reaction to Seven’s accident had made her realize that her feelings might run even deeper.

Not wanting to seem like she was playing favorites, she tried to keep her visits to Sickbay limited, but still ended up there several times a week. She would go on days when she wasn’t having dinner with Chakotay; without the distraction, her mind would turn her worries over and over until she felt like she would go mad if she didn’t go reassure herself the young woman was still stable.

She held the same belief as Neelix that talking to a coma patient could help them recover, so she would talk about whatever came to mind – how her day had gone, or some juicy crew gossip, or interesting phenomena they passed. Sometimes she would simply bring a book to read aloud. She would almost never stay very long, her sense of propriety too strong to allow her to linger.

Every so often she would come in while Neelix, Naomi, or Harry were taking the opportunity to visit their friend. She was touched to see the little gifts they brought: bunches of flowers from airponics, get-well cards, and, from Naomi, a kadis-kot board. Once she even caught Tuvok in the middle of a very dry report on the overall functioning of the ship. On those occasions she kept her stays even briefer, allowing Seven’s friends their own time to visit.

At the end of a long day of reading tedious quarterly reports from all departments, Kathryn was looking forward to spending some time with Seven. After a long, hot bath and a simple replicated meal, she thought she’d go over a little earlier than usual. Tucking her copy of _A Brave New World_ under her arm, she set off towards Sickbay.

She had been reading the book to Seven over her past couple of visits, and couldn’t help but think how similar the ex-drone and John the Savage were. Two young people, plucked from everything they had known and forced into a society that didn’t understand and mocked them. She could only hope Seven’s tale wouldn’t end in so much tragedy.

Musing to herself, she wasn’t watching where she was going, and almost collided with someone coming out of the Sickbay doors.

“Oh, excuse me,” she apologized, seeing with some surprise that it was B'Elanna she had almost knocked down.

“Sorry, Captain, my fault,” B'Elanna said gruffly. Kathryn caught sight of suspiciously shiny eyes before the half-Klingon quickly turned away and made her way down the corridor.

She glanced after her for a moment before continuing into Sickbay. As she did she met the Doctor, who was just coming out of his office.

“Ah, good evening, Captain. Come to see our favorite patient?” he greeted.

Waving her book playfully, she said, “I brought the entertainment.”

He smiled, wandering over to his stock of hypospray vials and beginning to catalogue them.

Kathryn walked up to Seven’s biobed, drawing up the chair that now lived nearby. She cracked open her book to the bookmarked page, but immediately lowered it, her mind stuck on her unexpected run-in with B'Elanna.

“Was that Lieutenant Torres that just left?” she asked, keeping her tone carefully conversational. “What did she get into this time?”

The Doctor stopped scanning the vials to look up at her. “Nothing that I’m aware of. She was just finishing up her usual visit with Seven.”

Now it was Kathryn’s turn to glance up in surprise. “Her usual visit? I didn’t know she had been stopping by.”

Scoffing lightly, he told her, “Actually, she’s one of Seven’s most frequent visitors.”

“B'Elanna?” Kathryn’s eyebrows shot up her forehead. “Forgive me for seeming shocked, but I never would have guessed.”

“Neither would I, if I hadn’t been seeing it with my own eyes,” the Doctor told her wryly.

She sat for a moment, taking in this new news. “So she comes by often, then?”

“Often?” He scoffed again. “I’d say so. Try twice a day.”

“Twice a day?” she exclaimed. Just a minute ago she had thought that B'Elanna never visited at all, and now the EMH was telling her she came by multiple times a day?

He raised his eyebrows, nodding emphatically. “Before and after each of her shifts.”

“But…” Kathryn was at a loss. The women’s relationship before the accident had seemed so antagonistic. “Why?”

The Doctor shrugged, his expression becoming sad. “I think that Lieutenant Torres feels heavily responsible for Seven’s accident. Just after she was hurt, she started coming in after every shift and reading Seven the reports the Astrometrics officers had written up. She’s kept it up ever since.”

Glancing at her timepiece, she said, “But those reports take twenty minutes at the most to read, and it’s been at least an hour since Alpha shift ended.”

“I didn’t say that’s all she was doing,” the Doctor said, seeming disgruntled at her interruption. “That’s why she came in the beginning. But after a while, she started staying longer and longer, just talking about the everyday kind of stuff you do. Now she’ll stay for an hour or so at a time, just whispering to her.”

“Whispering?”

If the EMH could have blushed, he would have. “Well, yes. I once let it slip that I could overhear her ‘conversations’ and, well… You know how private she is. Ever since she lowers her voice and makes me go in my office.” He scowled, showing how much he enjoyed being bossed around in his own Sickbay.

His eyes grew wide in a sudden panic. “You won’t tell her I said any of this, will you? I got the distinct impression she wanted her visits kept on the ‘down low,’ as it were.”

Even though her curiosity was still raging, Kathryn knew she had pried far enough into the personal life of her Chief of Engineering for the time being. “Of course not, Doctor. I appreciate you sharing even that much with me, though.”

Looking slightly discomfited, he gave her a nod. Walking back over to his hypospray vials, he made a show of studied interest as he resumed scanning them.

Turning back to Seven, Kathryn took a moment to stroke her soft blonde hair, loose from its knot after her first few days in Sickbay. She couldn’t help but wonder at the strange turn of events. B'Elanna, famous for kicking the ex-Borg out of Engineering, now voluntarily visiting her twice a day? The Captain shook her head. Guilt manifested in strange ways. Perhaps B'Elanna was simply trying to work through hers.

Reopening her book, Kathryn smiled down at Seven’s peaceful face. “Now, where were we?” Clearing her throat, she began to read.


	4. Chapter 4

Another week passed. Neural scans started to display healing within Seven’s neural pathways, but she still showed no sign of regaining consciousness. And with no previous information on Borg brain injuries, the Doctor had no way of hypothesizing when, or even if, she would do so.

B'Elanna started to spend more of her free time by Seven’s bedside. It wasn’t long before she ran into the rest of Seven’s visitors, her extended stays making her hard to miss, and soon the whole ship knew how much time she spent in Sickbay. She avoided the times Janeway might appear, however. Thinking about the Captain sitting at Seven’s side, holding her hand or touching her hair, made her irrationally angry, so she avoided doing so as much as possible.

Harry tried a couple times to convince his friend to step away for a while, but he knew it was no use. Her sense of honor wouldn’t let her rest until she had repaid Seven for saving her life.

One day, just like all the others of the past month, found B'Elanna sitting at Seven’s side. Alpha shift had ended hours ago, but she had been unable to drag herself away to eat or relax. Her quarters just felt too empty; it had been weeks since she had let Tom stay over, her thoughts too consumed with concern that she would never be able to repay her life debt to focus on her fiancé.

She had already read her shift report to Seven and told her everything she could remember about her admittedly unexciting day. As she ran out of things to say, she simply sat for a moment, staring at the ex-Borg. She thought back to all of their explosive fights, how Seven would draw herself up to her full height, her hands locked behind her back, projecting power and stability. Now she looked small and vulnerable in the loose surgical gown, a woolly blanket covering her legs, her golden hair spread out over her pillow. It made B'Elanna think of the ancient Earth tale of Sleeping Beauty. She brushed a lock away from her face, then lightly traced the edges of her ocular implant.

“Seven,” she whispered, leaning towards her ear. “Seven of Nine. Wake up. Please wake up. You’ve been asleep for too long. I… People out here need you. Wake up.”

For a long moment, she searched the still face, then screwed up her eyes against a bitter sting. That hadn’t worked the past thousand times she had tried, why would it now?

Opening her eyes again, she let out a long sigh, which quickly caught in her throat as Seven’s lashes seemed to flutter.

B'Elanna held her breath as she stared at the woman in front of her. Had she really moved? Or had it been wishful thinking? Maybe her sigh had ruffled her lashes, only making it look like –

A twitch in Seven’s hand caught her eye, her gaze zeroing in on her fingers. When she looked back up, bright blue eyes met her own.

Her heart gave one painful thump before she froze completely, her mouth slightly open in shock. Seven gazed back steadily, seeming to simply take B'Elanna in.

“D-Doc?” the half-Klingon warbled, too stunned to get her vocal chords to work right away.

With effort, she tore her eyes away and whirled towards the Doctor’s office, where he was sitting at his personal computer.

“Doc!” she hollered. “Get in here!”

The EMH jackknifed up from his chair, all but sprinting into the room. “What’s happen-” he started to demand, but screeched to a halt as he saw Seven.

While B'Elanna had her back turned, she had levered herself into a sitting position, and was now quietly looking around the room.

As the Doctor darted to his instrument tray to grab his tricorder, B'Elanna turned back to the woman sitting on the biobed.

“Seven,” she said, catching her attention again. “There was an accident. You’re in Sickbay.”

The Doctor approached over her shoulder, holding out his scanner to take some readings.

Seven flinched back slightly, bringing up her arm to shield herself.

“Seven, it’s all right,” he said gently. “I just want to take some scans.”

He brought the scanner back up, but she cringed away again, deflecting his hand away from her. He let out a sigh.

“Tuvok reacted this way as well when he woke up from his attack by the Ba’neth,” he told B'Elanna. “We just have to show her it’s harmless.”

Switching tactics, he turned the tricorder towards B'Elanna. “See? It’s just a tricorder.”

But even as he made to move the scanner over her, Seven’s hand darted out, trying to grab his wrist away. Instead, her hand passed straight through his holographic arm. Seven’s eyes went wide, staring in bewilderment between her hand and the Doctor.

“I don’t think we’re inspiring much confidence, Doc,” B'Elanna muttered. Thinking quickly, she held out her hand for the tricorder. “Here, let me try.”

“Hey, look, Seven, see?” She made sure the other woman was watching, then ran the scanner slowly over her arm and around her head. “I don’t mind the tricorder. It doesn’t hurt. Now you try.”

She held the scanner out to Seven, nodding encouragingly to her when she tentatively reached out for it. Gingerly taking it from her hand, she cocked her head, studying it curiously. Then she began to copy B'Elanna’s movements, hovering it over her opposite hand.

“That’s right. Now try your head,” she said, motioning Seven’s hand upwards. Seven followed her directions, circling her head with the scanner.

A tiny smile quirked B'Elanna’s lips as she saw readings appear on the tricorder. “Great, good job,” she praised. “Now go ahead and give the scanner back to the Doctor so he can analyze your scans.”

She demonstrated by handing the tricorder back to him. Seven looked at her briefly, but at her nod carefully dropped the scanner into his outstretched palm.

“Nice work, Lieutenant,” he murmured, giving her a smile as he turned towards his office.

B'Elanna made to follow the Doctor as he left the main area of Sickbay, but paused when Seven twisted towards her, reaching her out as if to stop her.

 _She wants me to stay_ , she thought, a brief spark of warmth flaring in her chest before she quashed it. _She’s scared and confused. She probably just doesn’t want to be alone._

After a long moment of silence, with Seven just staring as B'Elanna felt awkward, she decided she might as well do a few little tests of her own into Seven’s mental state.

“So, do you, um, do you remember the accident?” she asked clumsily.

Seven crinkled her brows and tilted her head, which B'Elanna took as a negative.

“Ok. Do you remember… anything else?”

She just furrowed her brows further. B'Elanna sighed. She was terrible at this, and feeling more out of her element by the second.

“Seven, I’m gonna go talk to the Doc for a second, okay?” She tried to reassure the ex-drone when she shifted closer. “I’ll just be right over there, and you’ll be able to see me the whole time, see?” She pointed to the Doctor, who was clearly visible through the windows of his office.

Seven still looked uneasy, but she settled back slightly, pulling her blanket farther onto her lap. With a reassuring nod, B'Elanna turned and made her way into the Doctor’s office, causing him to look up from his personal computer.

“You analyze those scans yet?” she asked.

The Doctor nodded, a satisfied look on his face. “Yes indeed. I’ve called the captain down to go over them with her.”

B'Elanna barely managed to keep a scowl off her face, her gut twisting uncomfortably. In all the excitement, she had completely forgotten that Janeway would want to come see Seven now that she was awake. Maybe she could sneak out before she got there…

She looked back through the windows to Seven’s biobed, her resolve fading as her eyes met Seven’s bright, steady ones. She couldn’t just abandon Seven because she felt weird with the Captain there. Besides, Janeway had more right to be there, anyway, as Seven’s mentor, instead of just the person who fought with and belittled her constantly.

Tearing herself away from that line of thought, she asked the Doctor, “Can you tell, does she have access to her memories?”

He shook his head morosely. “I assumed that would be one of the areas most affected, since her memory center was so interlinked with the cortical node,” he told her.

B'Elanna nodded. “How about her language centers?”

Pursing his lips, he told her, “Her cerebral cortex does show some healing, but it’s still very minor.”

“But she seems to understand what we’re saying,” she pointed out.

“Going by the scans and her behavior, it appears she may have a type of aphasia. She may be able to understand language, but not able to form it herself.” Bringing Seven’s neural scans up on his wall monitor, he began pointing to areas of her brain. “You see, her superior temporal gyrus, or Wernicke’s area, seems to be relatively intact, but there’s damage to her posterior inferior frontal gyrus in the Broca’s area.”

“Right,” said B'Elanna, the majority of the neurological jargon having gone in one ear and out the other. “So… she can understand but not speak herself?”

The Doctor let out a long-suffering sigh. “Yes, Lieutenant, for the most part, though her comprehension may still be limited.” In a muttered aside, he complained, “I don’t know why I try…”

She ignored him, thinking about the implications of the information. It was good that Seven could understand them; that would make things a little easier, even if she didn’t get everything. It would still be frustrating that she couldn’t respond, but nothing that couldn’t be dealt with.

As she mused, Sickbay’s doors slid open, admitting Kathryn into the room. Her eyes focused straight away on Seven, who was still sitting on her biobed, her attention caught by the opening door.

Immediately, her face split in a wide, watery smile. “Seven,” she cried, throwing her arms wide as she hurried towards her.

However, her footsteps faltered as Seven reared back, perching on the far edge of the biobed, her eyes wide in alarm.

“Woah, Captain, you might want to slow down a little bit.” B'Elanna rushed out of the office, her palms out towards Kathryn. “She’s still pretty skittish.”

Kathryn straightened up, looking contrite. “I’m sorry. I got a little carried away, I suppose…”

The Doctor smiled comfortingly at her. “Don’t worry, Captain. I felt quite the shock when I saw Seven was awake as well.”

Kathryn turned back towards Seven, approaching her carefully as the other two hung back. “Hello, Seven,” she said in a low voice. “I’m sorry I scared you. I’m just so happy to see you awake. Do you know who I am?”

Seven looked over her shoulder at B'Elanna as if asking for help.

“She doesn’t seem to remember much, if anything, right now, Captain,” the half-Klingon told her, coming up beside her. “The Doc says that her memories are probably the most affected since they were so connected to her node.”

Kathryn nodded, accepting the wisdom of the Doctor’s diagnosis.

“Well, Seven,” she said, reaching out gently to place her hand on Seven’s bent knee. “I promise I’d never do anything to hurt you. I only want you to get better.”

She gazed into the young woman’s eyes for a moment, her heart aching at the confusion and lack of recognition there, then turned to the EMH.

“Why don’t you tell me what you found,” she suggested, gesturing them towards the office. Holding up her hand before he could begin, she added, “And Doctor, try to keep it in layman’s terms.”

The Doctor gave a humph of affront, but followed her into his office to make his report.

B'Elanna leaned her hip against the side of the biobed, her arms folded across her chest. Catching the wide-eyed look Seven was giving her, she returned a tiny lopsided smile.

“The Doc already told me about your brain stuff, so I think I can skip this debriefing.”

Seven immediately settled back down, beginning to study the bunches of flowers other visitors had left around her bed, rubbing the petals between her fingers as if examining their texture. B'Elanna watched her take in her surroundings, curious hands roving over various surfaces, until she reached for B’Elanna’s forehead.

She recoiled without thinking, but felt badly when Seven quickly dropped her hand, a pout beginning to form on her lips.

“Those are my, uh, forehead ridges,” she explained to the other woman, trying to smooth over the situation. “I have them because I’m half Klingon.”

Seven’s hand went to her own forehead, feeling to see if it matched the engineer’s.

B'Elanna quickly shook her head. “No, you don’t have them, you’re fully human.”

Even as the words were coming out of her mouth, she was struck by them. When had she ever acknowledged Seven’s humanity? She had always thought of her as a heartless Borg drone, more machine than person. But the woman sitting in front of her, tentatively feeling her way around the world, was as far from a machine as possible.

Before the hot wave of shame could drown her, the Captain and the Doctor re-emerged from the office. Kathryn’s face was significantly more somber than before, but she still smiled as they approached the biobed.

“As I was just telling the Captain,” the Doctor began, his self-assured manner returning as there was finally some evidence of his treatments working, “I would suggest Seven goes to her alcove for a full regeneration cycle. Your portable unit worked very well, Lieutenant, but hopefully a full cycle will re-energize her nanoprobes.”

B'Elanna agreed, and they helped Seven down from the biobed, cautious of weak muscles that hadn’t been used in months. After a few turns around the room to ensure the Doctor Seven was steady, he affixed a neurocortical monitor behind her ear to supervise her brain functions while she was out of Sickbay. Satisfied that she was ready to leave, they were about to usher her from the room when a thought stopped B'Elanna.

“Hold on. Are we going to take her around the ship in just a surgical robe?”

Kathryn and the Doctor shared a look full of surprise and consternation.

“You’re right,” Kathryn said, ignoring Seven’s head tilt as she guided her back to her biobed. “Doctor, why don’t you go replicate a biosuit for her?”

Doctor nodded and scurried away to do just that. She stepped up to Seven, gesturing for her to lift her arms. “C’mon sweetie, arms up.”

Seven cocked her head but complied, lifting her hands up over her head. Kathryn bent down and grabbed the hem of her gown, beginning to pull it up over her thighs.

B'Elanna whirled away, her cheeks flaming in a blush. “Geez, Captain! You’re going to undress her right here in the middle of Sickbay?”

Now it was Kathryn’s turn to blush as she dropped Seven’s gown as if scalded. “No, I… of course not…”

Trying to cover up the uncomfortable situation, she quickly herded Seven into the small bathroom attached to Sickbay.

B'Elanna watched the door hiss shut behind them, feeling a strange mixture of emotions. On one hand, she was relieved that Janeway hadn’t expected her to be the one to help Seven undress. On the other, she felt strangely discomfited that the Captain would be the one alone with a naked ex-borg.

Before she could analyze that emotion too closely, the Doctor came back over from the replicator, a fresh biosuit in hand. She took it from him, instructing the bathroom door to only open part way, and thrust it through.

“Here you go, Captain,” she said, her voice rough with embarrassment.

“Thank you, Lieutenant,” Kathryn replied, taking the garment from her hand. B'Elanna caught sight of Seven’s head peeking at her around the edge of the door before she allowed it to slide closed again.

There was a long moment of silence as the Doctor and B'Elanna waited, unable to look each other in the eye. Then they began to hear Kathryn’s voice through the door, her volume slowly rising until the door slid open.

“B'Elanna,” she said, surprising the engineer with the pleading tone in her voice. “I need your help to get Seven into her suit.”

B'Elanna immediately flushed scarlet. “Wh- How- What’s wrong?” she stammered.

“She doesn’t seem to want to put it on,” Kathryn told her, a look of consternation on her face.

“Oh. Ok, um, I guess I’ll see what I can do,” she said, trying to figure out how she had gotten herself into this. _She saved your life, the least you can do is help her put on some clothes_.

Steeling herself, she followed Kathryn into the bathroom, fighting to get her pounding hearts under control.

As the door hissed shut behind them, she was relieved to see that Seven had her surgical gown on, the biosuit crumpled in a ball in the corner of the bathroom floor.

“I managed to get the legs over her feet, but when I tried pulling it up further she got upset and kept trying to kick it off,” Kathryn told her, sighing as she leaned against the sink.

B'Elanna picked up the biosuit, shaking it out and holding it towards Seven. “C’mon, Seven,” she cajoled, “won’t you put the biosuit on?”

Seven turned her face away and hugged her abdomen, showing her distaste for that idea.

“Why not?” she asked.

Seven just hugged herself tighter. Remembering that she couldn’t answer, B'Elanna tried to guess what was wrong.

“Is it uncomfortable?” Seven looked back at her, then bobbed her head once in a nod.

Proud of herself for devising a way to figure out what Seven needed, she continued. “Is it the material?” The biosuit felt silky and soft between her fingers, but Seven might not have liked the sensation.

She shook her head side to side.

B'Elanna tried to think of what else might be wrong. She thought back to all of the other biosuits she had seen Seven wear, the fabric hugging her curves… “Is it too tight?”

Seven nodded again, rubbing her shin with her opposite foot as if to get rid of the sensation of fabric against her skin. B'Elanna couldn’t help but find it unbearably cute.

“Well, that’s an easy fix,” she said, balling the biosuit up in her hands. “I’ll go replicate you something more comfortable.”

She stepped back through the bathroom doors, surprised to find Seven following close on her heels. “Stay here for a sec, I’ll be right back.”

Crossing over to the replicator, she called up a list of clothing options. She called over her shoulder, “Hey, Doc, do I need to make any modifications so the new clothes will work like her biosuits?”

“New clothes?” the Doctor demanded, coming up beside her. “What’s wrong with the biosuit? I designed it myself, you know.”

When B'Elanna just gave him a scathing look, he sighed. “Oh, all right. Technically, Seven doesn’t need the biosuits anymore. I designed them to help her regenerate her skin, but it’s finished growing back years ago.”

“Years?!” she asked, aghast. “Then why did she never get normal clothes?”

“I suppose I may have… neglected to mention that she no longer need to wear them,” the Doctor said, having the good grace to look contrite.

With a snort of disgust, B'Elanna turned back to the replicator, ordering a cotton t-shirt, a pair of loose cotton pants, and a pair of canvas shoes. Preparing to take them back into the bathroom, she had another thought.

Turning back to the Doctor, she stuttered, “You did give her some… I mean, she has on…”

If the EMH’s holomatrix allowed him to blush, he would have. “Seven’s biosuits provide her all the… support she needs.”

“Kahless…” she muttered, trying to fight back her own blush. She muttered another order for a bra and panties, then carried the whole bundle back into the bathroom.

Once there, she plunked the clothes down on the edge of the sink, then looked around aimlessly, unable to meet Seven or Kathryn’s eyes.

“Um, I think I’ve got it from here, Captain, you don’t have to stick around,” she told Kathryn. Despite her earlier reluctance, she now felt like she should be responsible for helping Seven change.

“Well…” Kathryn hesitated. There was really no way for her to refuse without it seeming completely inappropriate. “All right. Just let me know if there’s anything I can do to… help.” Cupping Seven’s cheek, she told her, “Be good for B'Elanna, now, okay?”

Letting her fingers trail in the lightest of caresses, she turned and exited the bathroom.

B'Elanna couldn’t keep herself from rolling her eyes. “Yeah, you be good, or it’s time out.”

Her sarcasm dried up when she finally turned to face Seven, realizing what she had just signed herself up for. She had to help this woman get dressed. And to do that, she had to help her get _un_ dressed.

Still, she didn’t want to treat Seven like she was helpless, not until they knew what her level of functioning was. She grabbed the pile of clothing, holding it out to Seven.

“Do you want to try doing it yourself, or do you want me to help?”

Seven furrowed her brows slightly, studying the clothes for a moment. She picked up the underwear and bent down to try putting them on for herself. She was a bit wobbly, and had some trouble getting her feet in the correct holes, but other than keeping her from falling B’Elanna did her best to let Seven do it herself.

After a moment Seven managed to pull the panties up under her surgical gown. She reached for the bra next, but B’Elanna stopped her.

“You have to take off your gown to put that on,” she reminded her.

Seven immediately reached for the hem of the gown, and B’Elanna barely manage to spin around to give her privacy before she was pulling it over her head. She cleared her throat, feeling a blush come over her cheeks as she held the bra out behind her back for Seven to take.

“Just put your arms through the straps and pull it up to your shoulders, okay?” she instructed. “Make sure it feels comfortable over your, uhh… breasts.”  _ Geez, what am I, in middle school? They’re just a part of her anatomy _ .

B’Elanna stood there for a long moment with her back turned, the sound of fabric shifting against skin the only noise in the room. She fought hard to keep herself from imagining precisely what Seven was doing.

Finally, she heard Seven make a muted sound of frustration, and felt a hand on her shoulder. 

“Something wrong?” B’Elanna asked, peeking over her shoulder to make sure nothing untoward was showing before turning around fully.

With a pout, Seven turned her shoulder to show B’Elanna her back, where the side straps of the bra were still hanging loose. B’Elanna had replicated a standard bra with a clasp in the back, not even thinking about how it might pose a difficulty to someone just recovering from a traumatic brain injury.

“Oh, those can be a real bitch to clasp, even in the best of circumstances,” she said. “You want me to help?”

Seven nodded, turning her back fully towards her, and for a moment all B’Elanna could do was stare.

Metallic implants emerged from Seven’s skin, drawing her eyes to her waist, where they arced high over her hips before dipping back down below her panty line.The bands of metal reinforcing her ribs also extended onto her back, tapering back into the skin as they neared her spine. There were three small starburst implants as well: two over her shoulder blades, and one at the small of her back. Contact points, B'Elanna surmised, for the alcove.

And between the dull metal, swaths of creamy white skin.

B'Elanna wrenched her eyes away, forcing herself to focus on her task. She grabbed the straps of the bra to fasten them, doing her level best to avoid touching Seven’s skin and failing miserably. By the time she had it secure, she was breathing rather rapidly and felt a kind of squirmy sensation low in her belly.

“Feel all right?” she asked, her voice coming out slightly strangled.

Seven nodded, turning her head to glance at B'Elanna through her eyelashes.

B'Elanna hurried back around Seven to pick up the shirt, trying to ignore the reaction Seven had produced from her unintentionally seductive look.

“Okay, here’s the shirt,” she said, holding the bottom of the shirt open for her.

Seven put her arms through and pulled it over her head, tugging it down over her chest. B’Elanna couldn’t help but reach out and straighten it, running her hands over her sides to smooth the fabric.

Seven moved onto the pants next, which created a bit more trouble than the underwear, and a lot more hoping. B’Elanna made her sit down on the toilet, afraid she was going to topple straight over, and things went much more smoothly after that. Once the pants were on, Seven slipped her feet into the canvas shoes, and she was fully clothed.

“There you go, all dressed,” B'Elanna said, stepping back to take in Seven’s new outfit. She had to admit, the ex-drone looked good out of the biosuit. The loose clothing made her look less severe, more soft and young.

Reaching up to smooth back her hair, which had become mussed while changing, she asked, “How’s it feel?”

Seven looked down at herself, running her hands over the unfamiliar fabrics, then met B'Elanna’s eyes again, the corners of hers crinkling happily.

B’Elanna couldn’t stop the corners of her mouth from tugging up in response, or her hearts from picking up their pace.

“Okay, great.” She cleared her throat nervously, then gestured to the bathroom door. “Janeway’s probably getting impatient.”

Seven followed her pointing hand through the door and B’Elanna trailed after her, both relieved and somehow disappointed that that whole thing was over.

As soon as Kathryn caught sight of Seven, a big smile crossed her face. “Well, hi there! Look at who’s all dressed.” She crossed over to Seven, laying her hands on her shoulders. “It looks like you did a good job. Did you behave for B’Elanna?” Instead of looking at Seven as she asked, she looked over her shoulder to meet B’Elanna’s eye.

Slightly nonplussed, B’Elanna stammered, “Uh, yes ma’am.”

Kathryn rubbed Seven’s shoulders lightly, then reached down to take her hand. “Very good. Now it’s time to go regenerate.”

As she lead her towards the door, Seven glanced nervously back at B’Elanna. Almost without thought B’Elanna found her feet following after them, wanting nothing more than to wipe the anxious look from her face. But just as she was about to pass into the hallway, she paused, looking back into Sickbay.

“Doc?” she called, causing him to look up from his console where he had busied himself. Her face softened, and she said as sincerely as she could, “Thank you.”

His look of surprise quickly dissolved into a tiny smile, and he gave her a nod.

She stepped fully into the corridor, letting the door slide closed, then quick-stepped after Kathryn and Seven to catch up.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a head's up that I updated chapter 4 a bit, specifically the part where Seven is getting dressed. I didn't like the lack of agency I gave her there, so I fixed that up a bit :)

B’Elanna sidled up on the opposite side of Seven from Kathryn, who was still holding her hand, her thumb slowly rubbing circles on the back of her hand as they made their way out of Sickbay. Kathryn kept up a soft running commentary of banalities, which B’Elanna ignored in favor of shooting death glares at any crew members they encountered that had the gall to stare. She also did her best to ignore the way the back of Seven’s mesh-encased hand would occasionally brush against hers, although she never tried to move farther away.

As they made their way down to Deck 8, she noticed Seven start to fiddle with the cortical monitor behind her ear, fingers scratching at the edges as if to pry it off.

“Hey,” B'Elanna tutted, lightly smacking Seven’s hand away from the monitor.

Seven tucked her fist behind her back, looking down and away.

Kathryn immediately leaned around Seven to frown at her. “B'Elanna!”

“What?” B’Elanna crossed her arms defensively. “She was messing with the monitor.”

“That doesn’t mean you have to get rough with her,” Kathryn scolded. She came to a stop and drew Seven’s hand from behind her back, cupping it in her own. “Did that hurt?” she asked, running her fingers over the metal and flesh as she made soothing noises. Seven simply tilted her head.

Behind them, B’Elanna couldn’t help but sulk a little. That was what Kathryn considered “rough”? She had barely tapped Seven’s hand. She was just trying to make sure she kept her cortical monitor on; it was important to track her brain functions and make sure nothing was going wrong.

After Kathryn finished fluttering over Seven, she took an even tighter grip on her hand, and B’Elanna fell slightly behind them, feeling awkward from Kathryn’s behavior. She was slightly gratified when Seven kept checking over her shoulder for her, and she gave her a small nod each time.

The remaining trip to Cargo Bay 2 was short, and in no time the three women were stepping up to the large doors. They slid open noisily, revealing Icheb standing stiffly near his console.

“Good evening, Captain, Lieutenant… Seven,” he finished almost shyly.

Kathryn smiled warmly at him. “Hello, Icheb. I trust the Doctor sent word we were on our way down?”

Icheb nodded. “Aye, Captain. He contacted me just after you had left to explain the situation.”

“Then he told you about Seven’s condition?” B’Elanna asked.

Icheb nodded again, this time much more slowly. Looking up at Seven, he said, “He told me you would be able to understand me, but not have the ability to respond.”

Seven gazed at him for a moment, then looked over to B’Elanna. The half-klingon nodded towards her. “You used to know Icheb. You actually took care of him. He’s a good friend.”

Seven turned back towards him, and B’Elanna couldn’t help but laugh when she reached out a hand towards his nose ridge.

“He’s Brunali,” she explained. But her laughter dried up as Seven’s hand strayed towards Icheb’s left eye, and the thin implant that outlined it. “That, um, that’s -”

“Seven!” Kathryn interrupted, placing a hand on her lower back and steering her towards the alcoves. “Come over here now. It’s time for you to go regenerate.”

Seven followed willingly for the first few steps, but as they drew close to the alcoves, her eyes grew wide and fearful. She dug in her heels, twisting away from the dark metal and eerie green lights, resisting Kathryn’s attempts to draw her closer. Wrenching from Kathryn’s grasp, she retreated back to B’Elanna, hiding behind her shoulder.

“B’Elanna?” Kathryn turned to her, a hint of exasperation to her voice.

Though she was worried, B’Elanna felt a twinge of satisfaction that she seemed to be the one Seven trusted most. She turned around to face Seven, tilting her head to meet Seven’s averted eyes.

“You don’t want to go into the alcoves, huh?”

Seven turned her face even further away, wrapping her arms around her stomach.

B’Elanna studied the alcoves. The tall, bulky machinery and dull lighting did make them seem hulking and sinister.

“They are pretty creepy, aren’t they?” She glanced back at Seven, who was watching her with serious eyes. “But they won’t hurt you. They’re meant to help you, make you feel better.”

She looked around, gesturing Icheb towards her. “In fact, you know who uses an alcove? Icheb here.” She put her arm around him in a tight side hug, playfully jostling him a little. “He uses one all the time. Why don’t you show her how it’s done?”

With a nod, he approached the controls and typed in a series of commands. He then stepped into his usual alcove, his eyes sliding closed as it initialized with a click. Seven edged towards him, her eyes trained on his chest as it rose and fell with gentle breaths.

“See?” B’Elanna told her. “You just go to sleep. It’ll help you feel better faster.”

After a few moments, the computer announced, “Regeneration cycle complete.” Icheb opened his eyes and stepped forward smoothly, interlocking his hands behind his back.

Meeting Seven’s eyes, he assured her, “There is nothing to fear, Seven. As you can see, I am still functioning.”

That seemed to assuage Seven’s fears somewhat, and she crept closer to the alcoves, touching and studying them.

Kathryn watched her with a fond smile before turning to Icheb and B’Elanna. “I’ll stay here to make sure she’s okay and she regenerates correctly. Icheb, go ahead to Astrometrics. And B’Elanna, go get some rest.”

For some reason, the idea of leaving didn’t sit well with B’Elanna. Maybe it was just that she had become accustomed to spending time near Seven, guarding her. But know that she was awake, she didn’t need B’Elanna to hang around. B’Elanna told herself not to be so self-centered and let other people help the ex-drone with her recovery.

Unbidden, a picture of Kathryn standing close to Seven while she slept popped into B’Elanna’s mind, and her gut churned at the image. She shoved the thought aside. Janeway was just arranging things how she saw best.

Seven noticed as B’Elanna turned to leave and hurried over to her, her brows furrowed.

B’Elanna couldn’t help a smile. “Don’t worry, Seven, I’m not going too far. I’m just going to my own quarters so I can sleep, too. The Captain is going to stay with you for now.”

Seven looked between B’Elanna and Kathryn, looking unsure. With a soft laugh, B’Elanna gave her a nudge towards the Captain. “Go on. I’ll be back later.”

She watched as Seven reluctantly made her way over to Kathryn, then turned and exited the cargo bay. As she made her way to her quarters, she had to fight against the urge to turn back, Captain’s orders be damned. She chided herself; at this point spending more time with Seven would just be indulging in the preference she had shown her. Janeway was used to taking care of an entire ship; she could watch over one ex-Borg.

B’Elanna stepped through the door to her quarters, immediately struck by the air of disuse. The air was still, and she wouldn’t have been surprised to find a layer of dust over everything. She knew she had been neglecting her personal space to spend more time in the Sickbay, but she didn’t think it had gotten this bad.

With a sigh, she crossed over to her bedroom, haphazardly shucking her uniform and falling into bed. She hated to admit it, but she really was tired. The past few hours had held quite a bit of excitement.

She settled down under the covers and closed her eyes, waiting for sleep to take her. But try as she might, she couldn’t quiet her thoughts. They kept running back towards Seven - reliving her first waking up, thinking about her new, softer outfit, wondering if her regeneration was going successfully.

B’Elanna tossed and turned, willing her restless mind to just shut up, but to no avail. Finally, she tossed the blanket aside with a groan. It had been less than an hour, but she knew that if she didn’t go back down to Cargo Bay 2 she would never find any peace.

Throwing on a new uniform, she hurried back down to the cargo bay, slowing down as she walked through the doors to act more casual. She needn’t have bothered, because as she stepped into the room she found it almost completely empty. The only person there was Seven, standing primly at her alcove. Kathryn was nowhere in sight.

B’Elanna rolled her eyes with a sigh. “So much for watching over her.”

With no one else around, B’Elanna allowed herself to walk up to Seven, studying her for a moment. Her eyes were closed, her face blank and peaceful. B’Elanna wasn’t sure how to check the alcove to make sure it was working properly, but it didn’t seem to be causing Seven any discomfort, so she had to take that as a good sign.

A jaw-cracking yawn came over her, making her realize just how tired she was. Knowing that she would just end up tossing and turning again if she went back to her quarters, she decided to just sit down next to Seven’s alcove. She stretched her legs out and leaned her head back against the metal structure, letting her eyes drift closed. It would only be a short nap, she told herself. With the security of knowing that someone would have to literally step over her to get to Seven, she was able to drift off in seconds.

With a click, Seven of Nine stepped forward from her alcove, opening her eyes. A robotic voice announced that her regeneration cycle was complete, but she ignored it when her foot bumped into something in front of her alcove. She looked down to find B’Elanna sitting at her feet, her legs stretched out in front of Seven, fast asleep.

Seven crouched down next to her, cocking her head to study her. She reached out with one finger and poked her firmly in the shoulder.

B’Elanna jerked, her eyes popping open. She looked around wildly for a moment before she spotted Seven leaning over her.

“Oh, hey Seven.” A smile formed on her face, then grew a bit rueful. “Guess I overslept a bit, huh.”

She levered herself to her feet with a groan, twisting her back until it popped. “How’d you sl- regenerate?”

Seven looked at her for a moment, then furrowed her brow. B'Elanna realized she must be frustrated at her inability to respond, so she tried a different tack.

“You feel rested?”

A smile replaced Seven’s frown, and she gave a happy nod.

“Good I’m glad.” B’Elanna stretched once more, then brushed off her pants from sitting on the floor. “I didn’t get to shower last night, and you haven’t had one in a while. You want to come to my quarters to clean off?”

Seven nodded again, bringing a smile to B’Elanna’s face. She guided Seven out of the cargo bay, leading her towards her quarters. She didn’t even realize she had taken Seven’s hand until she felt their clasped hands swinging between them.


End file.
